Device for orienting spinning cops



y 6, 1970 G. FREHN 3,513,959

pEvIcE FQR ORIENTING SPINNING COPS Filed Oct. 9, 1967 United States Patent 3,513,959 Patented May 26 1970 Int. Cl. B6 g 47/24 U.S. Cl. 19833 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Device for orienting wound coils having opposite core ends of different diameters so that the core ends of similar diameter face in the same direction, comprising means for sequentially advancing the coils in a direction transverse to the axes thereof along a given path, with the ends of the coils facing haphazardly in opposite directions, sensing means in said path for measuring the size of .the diameter of the core laterally of the winding thereon, and a stop member located downstream of said sensing means and operatively connected thereto, said stop member being insertable in said path to a location betweenthe center line of said path and the outer edge of said path in response to measurement of the core-end diameter by said sensing means.

My invention relates to device for orienting yarn or thread-wound coils having cores with one of the respective ends thereof larger in diameter than the other end thereof, such as spinning cops, by utilizing the fact that the diameters at both ends of the core are different.

In the French Pat. 1,411,937 there is disclosed a device which orients cops, delivered from a spinning machine in large containers, so that all of the tips of the cops extend in the same direction. According to the French patent, the cops are placed on a holding device suitably adapted to receive them and the diameters at both ends of the core are compared to one another. Depending upon the measurements obtained by the comparing device or comparator, the cops are fed, always with the same end first i.e. either always foot first or always tip first, out of the holder device to a collecting device from which they are delivered, for example, to a winding station of a spinning machine.

The entire device of the aforementioned French patent, i.e. the comparator and the mechanism for suitably orienting the cops, is relatively complicated regardless of whether the comparator is provided with one or two measuring devices. Furthermore, continuous operation of the device is possible only with added increase in expense.

It is accordingly an object of my invention to avoid the aforementioned disadvantages of the known device and to provide the simplest possible, though most efficient and surest, device for orienting spinning cops.

With the foregoing and other objects in view I provide, in accordance with my invention, device for orienting wound coils comprising feeler or sensing means disposed in a path along which the coils are fed, the sensing means being responsive to the size of the outer diameter of a core end exposed alongside the coil winding on the core, and, downstream of the sensing device, at least onestop member operatively connected to the sensing means and controllable thereby so as to be insertable in the coil feed path at a location thereof outside of the center line thereof in response to measurement of the core-end diameter by the sensing means.

In accordance with further features of the invention, different types of coil feed paths can be provided, such as for example, the coil feed path can be in the form of a slide or chute or a conveyor system comprising a conveyor belt provided with pivotal troughs. An especially simple and advantageous construction of the entire device is provided, however, when in accordance with a further feature of the invention the coil feed path extends at least substantially vertically in the vicinity of the stop member so that the cop or coil can virtually fallfreely exclusively under the action of gravity. This is advantageous over a slide or chute 'wherein the cop can roll longitudinally in that the thread will not unwind from the cop so that no threads will remain hanging on any projecting parts of the apparatus.

- In accordance with additional features of my invention, the stop member comprises a lever arm which is insertable into the feed path of the coils so that one end of the coil core abuts against the lever arm and the coil is accordingly turned through an agle of 180 about an axis normal to the longitudinal axis of the coil.

In accordance with yet another feature of the invention, the stop member is formed of two lever arms located on both sides of the center line of the coil feed path and so controlled by and cooperating with the sensing means that one lever arm extends into the feed path. Both lever arms are pivotable about a common pivot pin inserted in a torque-producing magnetic coil energizable in response to the sensing device. The double-armed stop member advantageously permits the cop to be turned only about an angle of and thereafter further advanced only either foot first or tip first, as desired.

Other features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims. Although the invention is illustrated and described herein-as embodied in device for orienting spinning cops, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited to details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalence of the claims.

The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view, partly diagrammatic, of a device for orienting spinningcops in accordance with my invention; during one phase of the operation thereof;

FIG. 2 'is a front View of the device as viewed from the left hand side of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the left-hand portion of the device shown in FIG. 1 as seen in the direction of the arrowIII; w l.

1 FIG. 4'is a view'of the device similar to that of FIG. 1, illustrating a different phase of the operation thereof;

FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of the device as seen from the left-hand side of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the left-hand portion of the device shown in FIG. 4 as seen in the direction of the arrow VI.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. I, the phase wherein the thicker end of a coil core or the foot of a cop at the sensing location faces the observer, whereas the thinner end of a coil core or the tip of a cop at the sensing location is shown in FIG. 4 as facing the observer.

In the embodiment illustrated, a portion of the feed path of the cops is formed of a conveyor belt 1, having a plurality of conveyor troughs or pockets 2 for carrying the cops K in an upward direction shown by the arrow B until they are released at the top of the conveyor belt to a substantially vertical portion of the feed path, the socalled drop chute 3. While the cops K are still located in the conveyor belt 1, they pass between two straightening plates 4 and 5 which fix their lateral position. Thereafter the cops K are advanced .past a sensing device 6 having a pivotable contact 8 and a stationary contact 9. A spring-biased flat 7 forces the cop K against the conveyor belt 1 or against the pocket 2 thereof during the sensing operation so that the position of the cop also remains fixed this way during the sensing of the coreend diameter thereof.

As aforementioned, there is shown in FIG. 1 the phase wherein the thicker core end or foot of the coil or cop faces the observer so that the thicker core end or the cop foot raises the contact 8 into engagement with the stationary contact 9. Accordingly, the circuit of the contacts 8 and 9 with a current source 10 is closed to energize a magnetic coil 11 connected in the circuit and wound so as to produce a torque action on an armature to which a pivot pin 12 is secured. A stop member in the form of a two-armed lever 13, 14 is connected to the pin 12. When the circuit of the electrical source 10 is closed by engagement of the contacts 8 and 9, the magnetic coil 11 turns the lever arms 13 and 14 so that the lever arm 13, as shown in FIG. 3, is inserted into the coil feed path outside the center line M thereof i.e. between the center line M and the edge of the path. The cop or coil which caused the circuit to close then falls so that its furthermost end engages the lever arm 13 and pivots in the illustrated manner about the lever arm 13 so that it falls foot first down the drop chute 3.

Since the magnetic coil 11 becomes deenergized and, consequently, the lever arm 13 swings out of the feed path of the cops again after the contacts 8 and 9 have been opened, the torque-producing magnetic coil 11 is provided with a known automatic delay means which acts so that the position of the lever arm 13 shown in FIG. 3 is maintained until the coil or cap has left the sensing device on the conveyor belt 1 and has been suitably oriented by the lever arm 13. For this purpose, a time delay relay or the like can be provided for etxample in the excitation current circuit of the torque-producing magnetic coil 11. After the adjusted delay period has expired, both levers 13 and 14 pivot counterclockwise about their common pivot axis 12 so that the lever arm 13 is removed from the path or coil feed and the lever arm 14 is again inserted in the coil feed path. This position is shown more clearly in FIG. 6 and serves for suitably straightening out or orienting those coils which face the observer as viewed in FIG. 4.

It should be apparent from FIG. 4 that the smaller coreend diameter or tip of the cop does not close the contacts 8 and 9 as it is advanced by the conveyor belt 2 so that the torque-producing magnetic coil 11 is therefore not energizable. Consequently the cop shown in engagement with the contact 8 drops with its tip end against the lever arm 14, turns through an angle of 90 and again falls foot first down through the chute 3. As aforementioned, the invention of this application is not limited only to the embodiment illustrated in the drawings and described hereinbefore. Thus, it is possible to place the sensing device. atadifferent locationalong the coil feed path, for example at a location within the substantially vertical portion of the path -i.e. of the drop chute 3. Also, the stop member can be located within the feed path formed by the conveyor belt if, for example, the cops are carried in pivotal troughs on the conveyor belt. It is further possible to employ another type of sensing device other than the electro-mechanical one of the illustrated embodiment, for example, a photo-electric sensing means for determining the diameter of the end of the coil-cores. As noted in the introduction hereinabove an individual lever arm can be employed as stop member instead of the two lever arms 13 and 14 and can be inserted or withdrawn from the feed path of the coils in response to the diameter of the coil-core end sensed by the feeler or sensing member.

I claim:

1. Device for orienting wound coils having opposite core ends of different diameter so that the core ends of similar diameter face in the same direction, comprising means for sequentially advancing the coils in a direction transverse to the axes thereof along a given path, with the ends of the coils facing haphazardly in opposite directions, sensing means in said path for measuring the size of a diameter of the core laterally of the winding thereon, and stop means located downstream of said sensing means and operatively connected thereto, said stop means being adjustably insertable in said path to a location between the center line of said path and an outer edge of said path in response to measurement of said core-end diameter by said sensing means.

2. Device according to claim 1 wherein said path in the vicinity of said stop means extends substantially in a vertical direction.

3. Device according to claim 1 wherein said stop means comprises two lever arms mounted at both sides of the center line of the path, said arms being alternately extensible into said path in response to the diameter measurement by said sensing means.

4. Device according to claim 3 wherein said two lever arms are mounted on a common pivot connected to a torque producing magnetic coil, and turnable thereby in response to the measurement by said sensing means.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 1,411,937 8/1965 France.

RICHARD E. AEGERTER, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 22l172 

